Blockchain & The Law Roundup: 14 October 2017

Things are a little quieter as the week comes to close. The majority of blockchain and the law pieces published this week revolve around regulations and ICOs. It looks as though smaller jurisdictions are taking advantage of the fact that they can get regulations into play a lot quicker than the major economies and outposts like Gibraltar, Malta and Abu Dhabi are moving ahead as quick as they can . Also keep an eye out on what’s happening in Switzerland and Singapore too.

Extract: Often, smaller territories are able to effect rapid change much quicker due to independent control over legislation, relative to larger territories. This is somewhat advantageous to the promotion and establishment of crypto and blockchain within their legal jurisdictions. For example, through the laws of Switzerland’s federal states, called Cantons, there is an increased agility when making amendments or providing legal transparency that may not exist at the national level, or that of larger states in other countries. This progressive stance in Switzerland has caused many innovative projects to headquarter there. Switzerland has become so accepting of ICOs that the city of Zug has dubbed itself “Crypto Valley” and built a core group of anchor tenants in the space. The Crypto Valley Association, a non-profit dedicated to the research and development in the industry, has started to develop an ICO Code of Conduct in response to China’s recent ban of token crowdsales. Such standards would establish a clear set of recommendations for companies that plan to conduct ICOs and provide clear and flexible direction regarding their legality.

Extract: The government of Abu Dhabi, through its markets regulator, has released guidelines on virtual currencies and initial coin offerings (ICOs).

The government of Abu Dhabi has published [PDF] guidelines to bring clarity to its regulatory approach to ICOs and virtual currencies for ICO organizers and digital currency adopters. After deliberation, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA)– Abu Dhabi’s financial markets regulator – has decided that a “one size fits all” approach to virtual tokens, be it ICO tokens or digital currencies or any other implementation of blockchain solutions powered by crypto tokens, is “inappropriate.”

Title: Op Ed: European Blockchain Business is Booming, Even Among Regulatory Concerns

Extract: As cryptocurrencies become increasingly mainstream, governments worldwide are exploring methods for regulating blockchain projects and their methods of funding. While China and South Korea have recently cracked down on ICOs and cryptocurrency exchanges, some nations in the European Economic Area (EEA) have become among the world’s most progressive in embracing this nascent technology. Still, the lack of standards in regulation will prove to be a challenge as blockchain startups seek to develop and mature.Since consensus is easier to realize with a smaller representative body, smaller autonomous territories are more fit to effect rapid change in promoting the establishment of crypto and blockchain companies in their legal jurisdictions. For example, the cantonal laws in Switzerland allow for increased agility when introducing amendments, disclosure and transparency. Switzerland has emerged as a European hub for cryptocurrency and blockchain development. These efforts have been led by the Crypto Valley Association, a nonprofit dedicated to the research and development of blockchain technologies, has also started to develop an ICO Code of Conduct in light of China’s recent ban. This would establish a clear set of guidelines for companies planning token crowdsales and provide clear, yet versatile, rules surrounding their legality. Anchored by the city of Zug, which has been nicknamed “Crypto Valley” after the numerous blockchain startups based there, Switzerland has remained a friendly environment for burgeoning blockchain and digital currency companies.